Ninh explains - The Rules of the X League
The object of the game is for your team to score more points than the opposing team.
X League, short for Extreme Football League is a variation of American Football played
indoors by women.
It was previously known as the Lingerie Football League, and the Legends Football League but
has now rebranded itself for the 2020 season.
Teams are made up of 20 female players, with 7 players taking the field at any one time.
The field is 30 yards wide and 50 yards long between both endzones, with two 8 yard endzones
at each end.
White markings on the field help players, referee’s and spectators keep track of what’s
going on.
The team with possession of the ball is known as the offense, and the team without the ball
is the defense.
The job of the offense is to move the ball up the field and score points.
This can be done by either running forwards with the ball, or by throwing it up the field
for a teammate to catch.
The offense is given 4 chances (or 4 downs) to make at least 10 yards.
If the offense manages to move the ball 10 yards or more, they will retain possession
of the ball whilst given another 4 downs to make another 10 yards.
For example … this is the line the team is on and this tells you how many yards they
need to make.
The defence’s job is to stop the offense moving the ball forwards by tackling.
This includes pulling them to the ground, stopping them from moving forward or forcing
them into the side barriers of the field.
If the offense fails to move the ball 10 yards within 4 downs, the ball is given to the defending
team at that point.
The defending team will then bring on their offensive players and try and move the ball
in the opposite direction so that they can score.
But how do you score?
The main way of scoring is via a touchdown.
If the ball is carried into the endzone area, or thrown and caught in the endzone, this
is a touchdown and is worth 6 points.
Unlike in Rugby, you do not need to touch the ball down on the ground, all you have
to do is cross the line with the nose of the ball to score.
Once a touchdown has been scored, you have the option of attempting to score an extra
point, by passing or run the ball into the endzone from the 1 yard line.
Or an extra 2 points by passing or running the ball into the endzone from the 3 yard
line.
Also, if the defense tackles an offensive player behind their own goal line, the defending
team scores two points.
Unlike normal American Football, there are no field goals and punting is not allowed
so even on the last down, they still have to throw or run with the ball.
Teams will usually have two different units of 7 players that come on the field at different
times.
They include:
The Offense.
These players will usually come on the field when they have possession of the ball.
The offensive unit consists of these positions:
The quarterback is the most important player on the field as she’s the one who decides
to pass the ball up the field, hand it off to a teammate so that they can run with it,
or run with it herself.
The Centre hands the ball to the quarterback during a snap, and is flanked by two Tight
Ends – together, they protect the quarterback.
The wide receivers are responsible for catching the ball thrown by the quarterback, and
the running back is responsible for running with the ball up the field.
The Defense These players will usually come on the field
when the other team has the ball.
The defensive unit consists of these positions –
The linebacker is responsible for combatting the opposing center, and she is flanked by
two defensive ends.
Together, they try and attack the opposing Quarterback and stop the other team advancing
the ball.
The Corners try and stop the wide receivers and safeties stop the ball from going up the
middle of the field.
The new X League will be played in 4 x 10 minute quarters, for a combined playing time
of 40 minutes.
Highest score at the end of time wins.
If the score is tied, one overtime period will be played to determine a winner.
The first team to score, wins.
In the regular season If scores are still tied after overtime, the game ends in a draw.
In playoff games, extra overtime periods are played to determine a winner.
It look pretty attractive and it is, but there’s a few other things you’ll need to know before
you watch or play in a game.
For example.
FUMBLE If a ball carrier or passer drops the ball,
that's a fumble.
Any player on the field can recover the ball by diving on it or they can run with it.
The team that recovers a fumble gets possession of the ball.
INTERCEPTION An aggressive defense can regain possession
of the ball by catching (or intercepting) passes that are meant for players on the other
team.
Both fumble recoveries and interceptions can be run back into the end zone for a touchdown.
INCOMPLETE PASS If a pass intended to a receiver hits the
ground first, or goes out of the playing area, it is ruled an incomplete pass.
A down is wasted and play restarts from the spot of the last down.
SACK If the defense tackles a Quarterback whilst
she has possession of the ball, this is known as a ‘sack’.
This is detrimental to the offense, as a down is wasted and it usually results in a loss
of yards.
PENALTY If a player breaks one of the rules, referees
will throw flags onto the field.
They will determine who made the foul and how many yards her team should be penalised.
TIMEOUTS If a team wants to stop the clock to regroup,
take a break or discuss strategy, they are allowed two time-outs per half.
Each time out lasts 60 seconds.
Players get a break of 12 minutes at half time.
This is all a lot to take in, but once you start playing or watching X League, the rules
will become clear.
Tickets are now available from the X League website, and be sure to subscribe to their
social media channels for full game streams, cool highlights videos and amazing content
from the athletes themselves.
If you have found this video at all helpful, please like, share & subscribe.
It takes me ages to make one of these videos and good karma is always appreciated.
If you want to know more about the other kinds of American Football – check out my tutorial
videos here and be sure to follow me on twitter also.
But in the meantime - enjoy the X League.
Ninh Ly - www.ninh.co.uk - @NinhLyUK - #ninhlyuk